still trying to figure out the clipping issue

I wrote earlier asking about the best way to manage the clipping that results from adding tracks in a multitrack session (in Audition 1.5). I was told to right click the "VO" to adjust the gain on each track as a way of managing clipping.

Can someone explain to me first, what the difference is between the volume and the gain, and, second, how to adjust the "gain" vs. adjusting the "volume," and, finally, what the ramifications are of both to the final sound and as a way to deal effectively with clipping when making multitrack mixdowns? Thanks-

Volume is a degree of loudness, gain is an increase in said volume ... The purpose of the session side is to adjust your volumes on the differnt tracks to get a proper mix ... You want to be able to hear each track clearly ... This is accomplished in part by adjusting the volume ... I hope this clearifies things for you ... WILLIE

In multitrack view, alt + 2 brings up the mixer, where you can set the relative levels of the tracks to achieve the balance that you require, and also set the overall level with the master fader so that the loudest part of the aggregate of tracks does not clip. If you set options > settings > multitrack > premixing to 32 bit, within the mixer you will have 1500dB of dynamic range, so clipping is very unlikely to become an issue.

Furthermore if you set Options > Settings > Multitrack > Mixdowns to 32 bit as well, you can more or less forget about clipping altogether - in your mixdown at any rate. When the mixdown appears in edit view, even though it might look and sound horribly clipped, simply normalise it to say 99% and hey presto, you've got a completely undistorted file. Then press F11 to convert it to 16 bits (if that's how you want it to end up).

Try it with a bit of loud music. Have the same clip duplicated across say four tracks. Raise the level of each track in the mixer by say 10dB and leave the master on zero dB. Played back it will sound horrible because your soundcard won't be able to cope. Mixed down it will look like one solid block of colour, not a waveform. But normalise it and the magic happens. Audition can handle it - in 32 bits - quite happily internally.